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History · Stevenson

Stevenson’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold just one old photo of Stevenson. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

1old images & papers
11recent photos
Excursion members holding fruit baskets at Stevenson train station, September 1908, 1908 · Wikimedia Commons

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

Stevenson is named for early settler George H. Stevenson. The Stevenson family, who settled in the Gorge in the 1800s from Missouri, founded the town of Stevenson on the old Shepard donation land claim. Under the auspices of the Stevenson Land Company, George Stevenson purchased the original townsite for $24,000 in 1893, building the town along the lower flat near the river. Settlers expanded the original dock to serve the daily arrivals of sternwheelers unloading passengers, cargo and loading logs.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

built from the dates on the items below
1908Excursion members holding fruit baskets at Stev…Commons
1910–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Be one of the first

Start Stevenson’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Stevenson’s history is told.

1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewExcursion members holding fruit b…, 1908: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Famous people from Stevenson

See all 1 →
DMDarren MorningstarSports
By decade

Stevenson, decade by decade

1900s1 item
Excursion members holding fruit baskets at Stevenson train station, September 1908CommonsExcursion members holding fruit baskets at Stevenson train …1908
1910s–
1990s
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
Today11 photos
Stevenson, WA 98648, USA - panoramio (10)CommonsStevenson, WA 98648, USA - panoramio (10)2015Stevenson, WA 98648, USA - panoramio (1)CommonsStevenson, WA 98648, USA - panoramio (1)2015SkamaniaCommonsSkamania2015Near Stevenson, WA, Columbia River Gorge, Burlington Northern Santa Fe ^8233 Westbound, 2008CommonsNear Stevenson, WA, Columbia River Gorge, Burlington Northe…2008Stevenson, Washington on Columbia RiverCommonsStevenson, Washington on Columbia River2007Stevenson Washington public library interiorCommonsStevenson Washington public library interior2007Stevenson Washington main streetCommonsStevenson Washington main street2007Stevenson Washington elementary schoolCommonsStevenson Washington elementary school2007Stevenson Washington city hallCommonsStevenson Washington city hall2007Columbia River at Washington-Oregon BorderCommonsColumbia River at Washington-Oregon Border2007Columbia River at Washington-Oregon BorderCommonsColumbia River at Washington-Oregon Border2007
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Stevenson is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Stevenson has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Clark Thompson House in Cascade Locks, 1.7 miles away.

Stevenson and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Stevenson. Tap a dot.
Clark Thompson HouseCascade Locks Marine ParkCascade Locks Work CenterBonneville Dam Historic DistrictBonneville Dam Historic District (Boundary Increase)Region Six Personnel Training Station

Closest to Stevenson

Clark Thompson HouseCascade Locks · Built 19061.7miCascade Locks Marine ParkCascade Locks · Structure1.9miCascade Locks Work CenterCascade Locks · Building2.8miBonneville Dam Historic DistrictCascade Locks · District4.4miBonneville Dam Historic District (Boundary Increase)Cascade Locks · District5.1mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Clark Thompson House’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Stevenson?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Stevenson’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as Excursion members holding fruit baskets at Stevenson train station, September 1908 (1908) and it appears here side by side.

🔁 Retake this view · +15

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Cascade Locks📜 North Bonneville📜 Hood River📜 White Salmon

From Wikimedia Commons (12). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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